The Battle of Agincourt, 1415: Longbowmen, Bands of Brothers, and Henry V’s Triumph

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 27 November 2025

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

From Shakespeare's 'band of brothers' speech to its appearances in numerous films, Agincourt rightfully has a place among a handful of conflicts whose names are immediately recognized around the world. The Battle of Agincourt, fought in 1415, is famous for the decisive role of the English and Welsh longbowmen, who—despite being significantly outnumbered and exhausted—decimated the heavily armored French nobility with volleys of arrows. This unlikely victory was profoundly important because it not only paved the way for King Henry V to be named heir to the French throne via the Treaty of Troyes, but it also demonstrated the waning dominance of the medieval knight in warfare.

Today’s guest is Michael Livingston, author of “Agincourt: Battle of the Scarred King.” We go back to the original sources, including the French battle plan that still survives today, to give a new interpretation, one that challenges the traditional site of the battlefield itself. The English victory at Agincourt on October 25, 1415, was a result of strategic brilliance, terrain advantage, and the devastating effectiveness of the longbow, combined with French tactical errors. Henry V’s smaller army, roughly 6,000-9,000 men (mostly longbowmen), faced a French force of 12,000-36,000, including heavily armored knights.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Scott here with another episode of the History Unplugged podcast.
0:07.7	From Shakespeare's Band of Brothers speech to its appearance in many films,
0:11.0	the Battle of Agencourt in 1415, rightfully has a place among a handful of conflicts
0:15.0	whose name are immediately recognized around the world because it was one of the greatest
0:18.1	English triumphs in the Hundred Years' War. In this battle,
0:21.0	English and Welsh Longbowman, who, despite being significantly outnumbered and exhausted,
0:25.0	decimated the heavily armored French nobility with a volley of arrows. This unlikely victory
0:29.4	was important because it not only paved the way for King Henry V to be named heir to the
0:33.2	French throne, but also demonstrated the winning dominance of the medieval knight in warfare.
0:38.2	In today's episode, we're going to go deep into the battle by looking at the entire campaign
0:42.0	that preceded it, the original French plan, how the plan differed from the actual battle,
0:46.9	and fresh insights into the men who fought and died there. We're joined by today's guest,
0:50.7	Michael Livingson, author of Agencourt, Battle of of the Scarred King. Hope we enjoy this discussion.
0:57.7	And one more thing before we get started with this episode, a quick break for a word from our sponsors.
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